Hand truck



Aug. 25, 1953 N. TESSIER ETAL HAND TRUCK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 13, 1951 [/2 Uri-722F25 A r/dos filacker." J JVbeZ. 726520.

Aug. 25, 1953 N. TESSIER ETAL HAND TRUCK 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 13, 1951 VeZ fssz'er Patented Aug. 25, 1953 UNITED srArEs PATENT OFFICE 2,649,981 HAND TRUCK 1 Noel Tessier and Nicklos Blacker, Chicago, Ill. Application Marc h 13, 1951, Serial No. 215,226

1 Claim. (01.

The present invention relates to ahand truck.

- More particularly the invention relates to a hand truck of the type used in transporting bulky objects which are relatively easy to break or rupture.

In the handling and transporting of easily,

ruptured, bulky objects, many factors combine to make the job a difiicult one. For example, linoleum is bulky, heavy, and yet is not sufiiciently sturdy so that it can be pried, hooked, orby some other similar operation moved onto known hand trucks, push carts, or the like, whereby it can be transported from onelocalityto another. I

It is therefore one object of the present invention to provide a novel-hand truck which will simplify the handling and transporting of bulky,

objects around Warehouses. r g

Another object of the inven'fon is to provide a novel hand truck which facilitates the loading and unloading of bulky objects "on the load supporting platform thereof.

A further object of the invention is'to provide a novel hand truck having means thereon which will facilitate the loading and unloading of bulky objects on the load. supporting platform thereof, but which does not in any manner impair the, operation of the hand truckasa" transporting device.

A.feature of the invention is the provision of a hand truck including a wheeled frame, a roller rotatably mounted on at least one end of the.

load supporting platform of the frame, and brake" means mounted on the frame and operatively connected to the roller for selectively braking the same.

Other objects, features, and many of the -at-.

tendant advantages of thisinvention willbeap preciated readily as the same becomes understood by reference "to' the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein similarparts in each of the several figure s'are designated by the Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the hand truck shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of a roller means mounted on the hand truck shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view of the roller means shown in Fig. 3 illustrating the construction of the roller means and a braking means cooperating with the roller means.

Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings, the

novel hand truck, which for the most part is of 5 standard construction, includes a frame, indicated at I I, comprising a first member I2 having a handle portion I3, and a second member I4 having a handle portion I5. Second member I4 is parallel to and spaced from the first member I ,2, and is connected therewith by means of a plurality of cross bars I6 and a connecting web or load supporting platform portion IT. The load supporting platform portion Il may have a recessed area centrally located therein to provide for retaining cylindrically-shaped objects, such as a roll of linoleum, properly centered on frame II. In order that frame II be used as a transporting device, a pair of wheels, one of which is shown at It, are rotatably mounted on opposite sides thereof by means of a pair of mounting brackets, one of which is shown at I9.

Mounted on the end of frame I I, adjacent the end thereof to which wheels l8 are secured, is an elongated roller 2| which is journaled on the load supporting surface of the frame. As best shown in Fig. 3, roller 2i comprises a hollow cylindrical body having a knurled surface and having a respective one of a pair of enlarged semi-spheres 22 and'23 secured to each of the ends thereof. Roller 2I is rotatably mounted on frame II by means of a pair of semi-sphericallyshaped supports 24 and 25 which complementally co-act with the semi-spheres 22, 23, respectively, to provide a rounded barrier on each of the ends of roller 2|, and which are preferably mounted on a pair of upwardly bent extensions 26 and 2'! projecting beyond the ends of the members I 2 and I3.

By reason of the provision of the roller 2I on the end of the load supportplatform I! of the hand truck, the loading of bulky objects, such as aroll of linoleum indicated at 28, onto the load ;-.supportingv platform of the hand truck is greatly facilitated. With a hand truck thus constructed, all that isrequired in order to load the object 23 onto the hand truck is that the end of the truck be inserted under the end of the object to be handled or transported in the manner shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. The operators end, or handle portion I3, I5 of the truck is then pushed downwardly so that object 28 may be easily rolled upon the load supporting platform of the truck in the manner shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. During this operation the barrier formed by the co-acting semi-spheres on the end of the roller, serves to prevent the object from rolling off the end of the roller. While it is apparent that the provision of roller 2| greatly facilitates the loading of bulky objects on the load supporting platform of the hand truck, it can be appreciated that an object, such as the roll of linoleum indicated at 28, would not be securely retained on a truck while being transported due to the fact that one of its ends is supported by the roller and would tend to slide off of the truck.

To overcome the above objection, a brake means for selectively braking the roller 21 is provided. As is best shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, the brake means preferably includes a pin 3| supported on the end of frame H by means of a collar 32. Pin 3| is adapted to be extended into any one of a plurality of apertures 33 formed around the periphery of the semisphere 23 secured to the end of roller 2!,Q'a'rid is guided into engagement with any desired one by Letters Patent is:

of the apertures 33 by means ofa'pe'riphe'ral groove 3% formed in the semi-sphere 2.3. Th end of pin 31 opposite the aperture engaging end thereof is connected to one leg of a bell crank 35 pivotally mounted on frame II. The remaining leg of bell crank 35 is connected to connecting link 36 which is in turn connected to one leg of a second bell crank 31 pivotally mounted on the handle portion IE2 of frame H. The remaining leg of bell crank 31 is shaped to form an operating handle for thebrakemeans thus formed. Connecting link 35 is "normally biased by a compression spring 38 which serves to retain pin 31 in engagement with one-of the apertures 33 when the operating handleportion of crank 3'! is not compressed.

By reason of the above construction, rotation of the roller 2! may be prevented when a load 28 is supported on the hand truck in the manner shown in Fig. 2. To utilize the roller 'Z-I'When loading the object on the hand truck, all that is required is that the operating handle portion of bell crank 37 be compressed against the handle portion [3 of the hand truck. This action results in pulling pin 3| out of engagement-with the aperture in which it had been inserted, and allows roller 2| to rotate freely on its support. The object 28 may then be easily rolled on, or rolled off of the load supporting platform 11 cf the hand truck.

From the foregoing description, 'it can "be'appreciated that the invention provides a, novel hand truck which greatly simplifies the handling and transporting of bulky objects in that "the loading and unloading of such objects on the load supporting platform of the truck is facilitated by the provision of a roller on the end of the load supporting platform of the truck. Because of the provision of brake means for selectively braking the above mentionedrollenthe roller may be utilized Without impairing the normal operation of the hand'truck as atransporting device. Consequently, it can be appreciated that the invention provides anew 'and novel hand truck which will greatly improve'the pres- A hand truck including in combination a frame comprising a pair of spaced parallel members having handle portions and joined together by an interconnecting load supporting portion, said loadisupportingtportion having a recessed area for retaining tubular loads in place, wheels rotatably mounted on the ends of said members opposite said handleportions, an elongated roller having-a 'knui'l ed's'urfac rotatably mounted on said members 'on-tfie nds thereof adjacent said wheels, saidroller having a plurality of apertures spaced about the periphery -thereof, and brake means for said roller comprising a pin adapted to be extended into'said'apertures for selectively preventing rotation of said roller, a bell crank pivotallymounted on said'frame and having one of thelegstherdjf connectedto said p'in,"a connecting link 'operat'iyely"connected to the r maining leg of said bell 'crank,"-a second bell crank pivotally iii'ountd-on" the handle portion of one of said membersfsaid'seeond 'bell crank having one of the legsthereof formed as a handle grip and the remaining leg thereof op a e y connected to said connecting link, and a compression spring 'joperat y connected to said connecting link for no lly-biasing said pin into 'engagementwith' olne' of the apertures in said roller.

*NOEL TESSIER- NI KL SB A KE Refe en es Cite? in h l t i Patent UNITED STATES ,QPATENTS Number Name Date 73,398 Smith; Jan. 1'4, 1868 365,530 McCEaul ,June' 28, 1887 775,997 Streich Nov. 29, 1904 1,096,350 Brown I'May 12, 1914 1,361,728 Holdefer Dec. '7, 1920 1,4071235 Taylor :Feb. .21, 1922 1,439,257 Ogren Dec. 19, .1922 2,227,624 Benbow etzaly 'Jan..7,'1941 2,569,118 sh'ermanlifi 1951 "FOREIGN PATENTS Number C ry Date 23111187 "an; i /ia i'25-,*1925 

